Container closure



M y 5, 1951 F. H. APPEL 2,552,923

CONTAINER CLOSURE Filed Aug. 2, 1946 Patented May 15, 1 951 UNITEDSTATES PATENT CONTAINER 014511312 Frank H. Appel, San Diego, Calif,Application August 2, 1946, seri no. 687,891

2 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to containers for dispensing materials,and in particular to those containers which are arranged to maintainliquid or semiliquid foods, such as an aerated cream mix, under gaspressure.

Containers for dispensing aerated food mixes, such as whipped cream,under gas pressure are used to a larg extent in drug stores,restaurants, hotels and the like; Such containers are usually suppliedby a central distributor with the container filled with both cream andsome soluble gas solution therein, such as nitrous oxide gas, underpressure so that a user need only operate a pressure relief valve on thecontainer in order to obtain an even stream of the whipped cream when,for example, it is desired to dispense and to direct the flow of suchwhipped cream on ice creams, desserts, or cakes in any desired patternthereon.

Since these containers are transferred back and forth from thedistributor to the user and vice versa, it is desirable that thecontainers be of uniform size and symmetrical appearance so they may bestacked upon and adjacent to other ones in a relatively small spacewithout danger of gas pressure being released. Furthermore, since agreat quantity of these containers is handled by the distributor in arelatively short time,; in the interests of economy and good health itis desirable that the container and its associated parts thereon be ofsimple, easy fool-proof design and, more important, be easily cleaned solocal public health laws may be adhered to.

oftentimes the container is not leak-prooi with the result that all ofthe liquid food contained therein cannot be dispensed under pressure asintended. In such case the desirability of a leak-proof seal between thecontainer its filling hole closure member becomes mania fest.

Further, the aerated liquid, such as whipped cream, may be confinedwithinthe container for a prolonged period of time.

It is therefore an object of the present inven-, tion to provide adispensing container having the desirable features outlined above.

A specific object of the present invention is to provide an improvedhigh pressure dispensing container which may withstand considerableabuse in use and which may be stored and carried from place to placeconveniently.

Yet another specific object of the present invention is to provide animproved container char acterized by its simplicity and ease ofcleaning.

2, Still another object of the present invention is to provide animproved closure member arranged in cooperation with an opening in ahigh pressure container to form a seal.

The features of the present invention which" are believed to be novelare set forth withpar ticularity in the appended claims. This inventionitself, both as to its organization and manher of operation, togetherwith further objects and advantages thereof, may be best understood byreference to the following description taken" in connection with theaccompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of an assembled con tainer embodying'the presentinvention.

Figure 2 is a view in elevation and partly in section takensubstantially on the line 2-2 of Figure 1, but with the actuating member24 do;

pressed slightly so as to unseat the ball 20 from its valve seat 2|.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially on the line3&3 of Figure 1."

Figure 4 is a detailedviewshowing the top of the container closuremember shown also in Figs Figure 5 is a view in elevation .of thecombined check valve and dispensing spout assemblyzdei-v tached from thecontainer shown in Figure '1.

Figure 6 is a top plan view of a portion of the flange L6 shown inFigure 1 with the assembly 25 removedtherefrom.

Figure 7 is-a sectional view of a'modified assembly incorporating thepresent invention.

In accordance with the present invention the container 10 as suppliedfrom a distributor to a ing l5 boundedby flange l 6 is the openingthrough which liquid food, such as cream, is introduced" into thecylindrical body II and which, after the filling .operation, is closedby the closure member l2.

Check valve l3 disposed within the fluid conducting channel of thetubular member H, which hasfastened thereto at its bottom end downwardlyextending tube l8,- and'which is fastened at its upper end to the flangel6 having the'open ing l9 therein, the flange opening l9 and the Openingwithin tubular members I3 and I8 being in communication and incommunication with a point at the bottom end of container Ill so as toprovide a passage for the flow of fluid food, such as cream, from thebottom of container II] out through the flange opening I9. Such flow offluid food may be controlled by operation of the check valve I3.

Check valve I3 is of the ball type and comprises a'spherical ballarranged to seat against the valve seat 2| to thereby prevent flow offluid food through tubes I! and I8 when the ball is maintained seatedagainst its valve seat 2|. valve seat 2| may be lined with some flexiblematerial, such as neoprene, in which case the contact between ball 20and valve seat 2| is of a resilient nature. Valve seat 2| may takedifferent forms and may, for example, comprise an integral part of thetube member H, or it may take the form of a circular ring fastened tothe tube member I'I. 7

In the absence of any pressure within the container II], the ball 20falls by; gravity to a position lower than that shown in Figure 2wherein the ball 2|] is preventedfrom falling too far by engagement ofthe enlarged head 22 with the valve seat 2|, the enlarged head 22 beingon the upper end of the extension 23, which is fastened at its lower endto ball 20; that is, ball 2|], extension 23 and head 22 move as a unitwith respect to the valve seat 2| with the extension 23 and head 22serving as .an actuating member for unseating the ball Such 20 fromseated engagement with the valve seat 7 ment of the actuating member 24movably mounted on the assembly 25.

The assembly 25is releasably attached to the flange I6 with the opening26 therein in registry with the flange opening I9 by means of a bayonettype of connection between the assembly 25 and flange Hi. When theassembly 25 is mounted on the container III, as shown in Figure 2, theactuating member 24, comprising a pin with'an enlarged head on its upperend and a cylindrical guide and contact member 22 on its lower end, isin position for engagement with the ball actuating members 23, 24.

In Figure 2 the actuating member 24 is shown depressed slightly so as tounseat the ball 20 from its valve seat 2| so as to place the opening intube I! in communication with the openings 26 and 2! in the assembly 25.Openings 26 and 21 comprise the dispensing spout in the assembly 25.

The'assembly 25 comprising the check valve actuating member 24 and spout26, 21 is releasably held on the container Iil by means of a pair ofdiametrically opposed radially extending extensions 28 and 29 onassembly 25 cooperating with an annular groove 30 formed in the innerportion of the tube H. The assembly 25 is mounted on the container [I byfirst passing the extensions 28, 29 thereon through a pair of enlargedopenings 3|, 32 in communication with the groove 30 and then turning theassembly 25 a quarter of a turn to bring about positive engagement ofthe projections 28, 29 with the upper inner wall of groove 30.

Preferably in thus mounting assembly 25 on the container I Ii resilientmaterial in ring form;

such as a resilient ring 33,'is disposed between the assembly 25 and theflange I6 to provide resilient engagement between projections 28 and 29with the groove 30, and also to provide a good seal between thecontainer III and assembly 25' to thereby prevent flow of liquid foodtherebetween.

The resilient ring or gasket 33 is never subjected to the full pressureexisting within the container I0 inasmuch as the openings 23, 2? in theassembly 25 are in communication with the atmosphere and for that reasonthe gasket or ring 33 does not come in contact with the liquid food.There is no possibility of liquid food leaking between the tube I1 andthe cylindrical member II inasmuch as the tube I! is permanentlyconnected at its upper end to the cylindrical member II by welding,brazing, shrink fit or the like.

The closure member I2 is of oval or elliptical shape and has an outerperipheral edge greater than the peripheral edge of the correspondingoval or elliptical shaped opening I5 in the container I!) so as tocooperate with the inner peripheral edge of the flange I6 to therebyprovide.

a good seal. Preferably the upper peripheral edge of the closure memberI2 has fastened thereto by means of-a moldin process or the like somegasket material 34, such as neoprene, in the form of an elliptical ring.Inasmuch as the closure member I2 having the gasket 34thereon cooperateswith the inner face of the flange IE, the necessity for making theopening I5 other than circular in shape becomes evident. By making boththe closure member I2 and opening I5 elliptical or oval shaped, theclosure member I2 may be threaded through the opening I5 into thecontainer In so as to allow the gasket ring 34 to contact theinner faceof thefiange I6.. The closure member I2 is held in this position withthe gasketring .34 in contact with the flange I6, due to the clampingaction of the resilient clamp ing member 35mounted on the upper face ofthe closure member I2, H V g ,The clamping member 35 is of resilientnature and is fastened at a point intermediate its ends to the centralportion or the elliptical shaped plate 36 by means of a strap 31 havingits ends spot welded to the plate 36. Theclamping mem ber 35 comprisesa'flat resilient strip extending preferably along the major axis of theelliptical shaped plate 36 and has a pair of openings 38, 39

in opposite ends thereof for facilitating the' mounting of the closuremember I2 on the flange I6 in' a manner described more fully later. Theclosure member I2 is maintained on the flange 55 due to the clampingaction of the resilient member 35 which has its opposite endsextendingwithin recesses 40, 4| in the flange It so 'as'to include a portion offlange I6 between the remember II so that if desired another containerii I0 may be supported on the container IIJ shown. Thus, an importantfeature of the present invention resides in'making the closure member I2flush with the outer edge of the "flange l6 as shown in Fig ure 3whereby the containers Ill may be stacked one upon the otherwheh the-releas-. able assembly Z5is removed therefrom. Usually the containers||l comprise all the elements shown in Figures 1 and 2 but for theassembly 25 and such assembly is usually in thepossession of the user towhom the containers. ID aresupplied.

The closure member I2 is, usually mounted in the position shown inFigure. 1 by the distributor by the use of a special tool (not shown).Such special tool is arrangedto simultaneously engage thestrap 3'! andthe clamping member 35.. at the holes 38 and 39. so as. to provide notonly a handle for the clamping member 12 but also to bend the ends ofthe clamping member 35 upwardly, thereby to allow the flange IE to enterbetween the ends of the clamping member 35 and the gasket member 34.After the closure member I2 is positionedlas shown in Figure 1), suchauxiliary tool is removed and the con-tainer is then in condition forthe introduction of high pressure gas, such as nitrous oxide.

Such nitrous oxide gas under pressure is introduced through the flangeopening l9, preferably with the container l tilted so that the nitrousoxide gas entering the container It! does not mingle with the creaminitially placed therein. The check valve 13 does not impede seriouslysuch flow of nitrous oxide gas into the container II], but does functionto maintain the gas pressure in container ll] after the container isfilled with the high pressure gas. Usually the pressure within containerI0 is of the order of 180 lbs. per sq. in. and is initally tested at apressure of 500 lbs. per sq. in.

After the container l I] is thus filled with cream and nitrous oxide gasunder pressure of about 180 lbs. per sq. in., whipped cream may bedispensed therefrom by mounting the assembly 25 on the flange I6 andthen pressing the actuating member 24 downwardly to unseat the ball 20from its valve seat 2|, whereupon a stream of whipped cream flows fromthe bottom of container l0 up through tubes I8, I! past the check valveI3 and then out into the atmosphere through channels 26 and 21 in theassembly 25. After a suflicient amount of whipped cream flows out of thespout 25, 21, the operator removes the pressure on the actuating member24 exerted by his finger or thumb, as the case may be, whereupon theball 20 seals itself against its valve seat 2| thereby to automaticallyclose the check valve l3.

In the modified arrangement shown in Figure 7 the check valve i3,instead of being formed by a ball and cooperating seat (as shown inFigure 2), comprises a conical neoprene movable valve element 58arranged to be pressed in pressure sealing engagement against itscooperating conical metallic valve seat It is preferred (as shown inFigure '7) to make the movable valve element of some resilient material,such as neoprene, and to make the cooperating valve seat of hardmaterial, such as steel.

The valve element 50 is mounted on the metallic cylindrical member 52having a shoulder 53 thereon, the .base of the conical valve member 5'0being in abutment with the upper face of shoulder 53.

In normal use of the apparatus shown in Figure '7 the valve member 50 isallowed to move between its valve seat 5|, formed interiorly on themodified tubular member 54 (corresponding tothe tubular member l1) andthe tube 55 y (cor-- responding to the tube I8).

An important feature of the structure shown in Figure 7 is that thevalve member '50 may be easily removed for repair or replacement by re--ing nut 58, which is preferably of plasticorresilient material, and isremoved from the assembly by unscrewing the nut 58 from its cooperatingposition on the tubular member 54. When the tube 55 is thus removed thevalve member 50 may be removed by passing it throughthe opening 59. Thecylindrical valve member 52 is arranged to be actuated by the valveactuating member 24 in the same manner as the member 23 shown in Figure2.

An important feature of the present invention is that thegreater thepressure in container [0 the better the seal between the closure memberl2 and the flange l6 tends to become since with increased pressure thegasket member 34 becomes more and more compressed.

Another important feature of the present invention is the simple natureof the check valve l3, which is devoid of any crevices or reentrancesurfaces within which dirt or other foreign materials may accumulate, inwhich case the container l0 may be cleaned easily by passing a stream ofcleaning fluid, such as stream or the like, downwardly through theopening I}? in the flange l6.

While the particular embodiments of the present invention have beenshown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art thatchanges and modifications may be made without departing from thisinvention in its broader aspects and, therefore, the aim in the appendedclaims is to cover all suchchanges and modifications as fall within thetrue spirit and scope of this invention.

I claim:

1. In a dispensing structure, a hollow container with an ellipticallyshaped opening in one end Wall thereof bounded by the remaining innercircular flange, a releasable elliptically shaped closure member forsaid container disposed within its boundaries and arranged to contactthe inner face of said flange to thereby provide a seal whereinincreased pressure within said container tends to produce anincreasingly better seal, a flexible spring clip member extending acrosssaid closure longitudinally thereof and fixed thereto at a pointintermediate its ends to said closure member in face contact therewithand lying in a plane substantially parallel to the plane of said closuremember, the ends of said flexible spring clip being adapted to snap oversaid flange and thereby position said closure member against theperipheral portion of said opening with the periphery of the closuremember lying closely adjacent to one side of said container opening andthe ends of said flexible spring clip engaging said container on theopposite side of said opening, said circular flange being planar incross section and the distance between each end of said flexible springclip member and the closure member being substantially that of thethickness of said inner circular flange.

2. In a dispensing structure, a hollow cylindrical container with anelliptically shaped opening in one end wall thereof bounded by theremaining inner circular flange, a pair of spaced recesses in the outerface of said flange contiguous to said opening along the longitudinalaxis thereof, a releasable elliptically shaped closure member for saidcontainer disposed within its boundaries and arranged to contact theinner face of said flange to thereby provide arseal wherein increasedpressure within said container tends to produce an increasingly betterseal, and a flexible spring clip member fixed at a point intermediateits ends to said closure member longitudinally thereof and infaoecontact therewith, the portions of said spring clip extending fromthe point of fixture of said spring clip member to said closure membertoward the ends of said clip being adapted to flex and thereby snap overthe periphery of said container opening, into said recesses to therebyclamp said flange between said closure member and said flexible springclip member. 7

FRANK H. APPEL. 20

REFERENCES CITED,

.The following references are of record in the file or this patent: I VV UNITED STATES PATENTS I Germany Nov. 21, 1929

